Nepra seeks explanation for Nandipur plant closure

ISLAMABAD: The Nandipur energy challenge seems to have turn out to be a quite everlasting headache for the federal government which used to be requested on Thursday to give an explanation for why the 425-525MW energy plant had now not produced electrical energy since June.

At a public listening to on Thursday, Himayatullah Khan, vice chairperson of the Nationwide Electrical Energy Regulatory Authority (Nepra), ordered a written explanation from the Ministry of Water and Energy and the Northern Energy Era Corporate Restricted (NPGCL) as to why the plant had remained closed for see you later. The regulatory frame additionally authorized a Rs2.60 consistent with unit minimize in electrical energy charges for a month.

A workforce of Central Energy Acquire Company (CPPA) officers, led through Mohammad Ilyas, its basic supervisor, advised Mr Khan that the plant were closed for inspection.

The Nepra vice chairperson replied by way of pronouncing that this type of giant energy plant may just now not be close down for see you later at the pretext of inspections, including that the regulator want to know why it didn’t give a contribution energy to the grid.

He stated it had come to the regulator’s wisdom that the plant were in part dismantled via its Chinese language contractors in June. The Nandipur venture’s incapability to supply electrical energy had brought about a lack of billions of rupees to the country, he stated.

Responding to a query from a journalist after the listening to, Mr Khan stated the regulator may just impose a penalty at the era corporate involved at the foundation of written responses from the federal government and the corporate.

The Nandipur energy venture has attracted controversy ever because the plant’s set up used to be behind schedule throughout the Pakistan Peoples Birthday party-led executive when the Chinese language contractors demobilised and the equipment remained stranded on the ports. The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz executive revived the venture however, via then, its value had risen from Rs42 billion to over Rs65 billion. The facility plant has confronted a chain of operational hiccups throughout and after launching its business operations. All the way through the 2 executive tenures, the venture endured to draw a chain of courtroom instances, inquiries, investigations, audits and political and business disputes.

On the listening to on Thursday, Nepra expressed fear over using pricey gas at energy crops in spite of the supply of less expensive trade gas. The case of Kot Addu Energy Plant used to be highlighted as a part of the facility plant runs on diesel, although it may well be operated on regasified liquefied herbal fuel (RLNG).

The regulator also known as for an explanation from the Ministry of Water and Energy for now not notifying discounts in base tariff for distribution firms introduced via the regulator in January this yr, for the monetary yr 2015-16. Mr Khan stated as a result of the prolong in notification, shoppers were at an enormous monetary drawback.

Nepra then ordered all distribution firms (with the exception of Okay-Electrical) to refund Rs2.60 in keeping with unit to shoppers for electrical energy fed on in October. The Rs20 billion refund would now not practice to agricultural tube-wells and home shoppers the use of not up to 300 devices per 30 days.

Distribution firms price a better estimated gas price to energy shoppers which is later adjusted towards the real value within the next month, with the approval of the facility regulator.

The CPPA claimed that it had bought an approximate nine.five billion electrical energy devices (kilowatt hours) to shoppers in October 2016, at a complete value of Rs40.27 billion. The facility firms had charged reference gas fees of Rs7.34 in line with unit to shoppers, whilst the real gas value became out to be Rs4.74 according to unit, therefore the refund.

The CPPA reported that the very best contribution to energy era – virtually 32 consistent with cent (2.76 billion devices) – got here from hydropower crops which had no gas value in any respect. Then again, the price of furnace oil-based energy era used to be Rs7.96 according to unit, which had contributed about 30.three according to cent (2.63 billion devices) of the whole electrical energy era in October.

Likewise, the price of running gas-based crops for 2.1 million devices or (24.four consistent with cent of overall era) used to be round Rs5.five in keeping with unit, whilst energy manufacturing from RLNG had a two according to cent percentage at a mean value of Rs6.7 in keeping with unit.

The gas value of diesel-based crops used to be reported to be Rs12.11 consistent with unit with a era percentage of about two consistent with cent. The price of producing energy from coal-based crops used to be labored out at Rs4.five according to unit with a negligible contribution of not up to zero.2 in line with cent. Nuclear energy crops contributed about 5 consistent with cent of the whole energy at a price of Rs1.16 according to cent.